David Cameron’s so-called ‘sweetener’ is actually poisonous. It flouts democratic processes, attempts to bribe communities and councils and ultimately serves the interests of an industry which is unwanted, unsustainable and unsafe for people and climate. Cameron can be bought by big business but communities won’t be – we’ve seen that in Barton Moss and Balcombe.

Cameron’s continued pursuit of shale further highlights his disjointed approach to climate change.

Leading scientists offered words of praise for the Prime Minister over the weekend, for making the link between a run of recent floods in the UK and global warming – a move expected to cause friction with some Conservative backbenchers.

At a time when the Government has an important decision to make on our future climate change ambitions and in urging European partners to agree challenging emission reduction targets for the next 20 years, one has to hope that their boundless enthusiasm for shale gas will at least be matched by a similar willingness to rapidly decarbonise the UK’s energy system.

Otherwise, the UK’s commitments to meet its obligations under the Climate Change Act and its stated ambition to rapidly grow Britain’s low-carbon industries will seriously lack credibility.

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TckTckTck is the online hub for the Global Call for Climate Action. The GCCA represents an unprecedented alliance of more than 400 nonprofit organizations from around the world. Our shared mission is to mobilize civil society and galvanize public support to ensure a safe climate future for people and nature, to promote the low-carbon transition of our economies, and to accelerate the adaptation efforts in communities already affected by climate change.